Method and system for recycling papers

ABSTRACT

A method for recycling paper to produce a less white and clean office paper product for paper printing and writing, said method comprising the steps of: collecting waste papers; sorting said collected papers waste without the need to separate between the various paper grades; pressing said sorted recycled paper; pulping said sorted recycled paper by a pulper which contains water turns into a mixture; said pulper chops said sorted recycled paper into small pieces; heating said pulp mixture breaks said recycled paper down more quickly into tiny strands of cellulose or fibers to eventually, said sorted recycled paper turns into a pulp; sieving, said pulp is forced through sieves containing holes and slots of various shapes and sizes, said sieves remove small contaminants; cleaning, said pulp spinning around in large cone-shaped cylinders; heavy contaminants are thrown to the outside of the cone and fall through the bottom of the cylinder; lighter contaminants collect in the center of the cone and are removed; refining, said pulp is beaten to make said recycled fibers swell for papermaking; if said pulp contains any large bundles of fibers, said refining step separates said bundles into individual fibers; dewatering, said watery pulp enters a headbox at a paper machine, and then is sprayed in a continuous wide jet onto a huge flat wire sieve which is moving very quickly through said paper machine; on a sieve, water starts to drain from said pulp, and said recycled fibers quickly begin to bond together to form a watery sheet; said sheet moves rapidly through a series of felt-covered press rollers which squeeze out more water; said sheet, which now resembles paper, passes through a series of heated metal rollers which dry said paper’, said dried paper is wound into a giant roll and removed from the paper machine; the roll of said paper is cut into smaller rolls, or sometimes into sheets and made into said paper product.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method and system for recycling papers, in particular recycling paper for office paper printing and writing proposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The paper recycling procedure turns the waste materials to materials that will have an economic value. The increase standard living worldwide contributes to the increase of waste/garbage volume that is being transported to burial sites. Israel alone produces about 4.5 million tons of garbage a year. This amount increases by about 4 percent every year. Waste paper, cardboard and newspaper are accounted for about 33 percent of the amount of garbage and waste materials. Proper treatment of this waste will reduce significantly the total amount of waste/garbage.

Most of the garbage is going “bury” in the ground landfills. This method results in a loss of land reserves and environmental hazards mainly: pollution of groundwater, smell and smoke nuisances, multi bacteria and other pests and economical losses. A right treatment of industrial waste, municipal and private can significantly reduce the amount of garbage and will help to improve the environment and improve quality of life. The use of waste by recycling creates for example the following advantages: minimizing the amount of garbage bury to landfills. The waste disposal process is reduced and thus the waste disposal expenses reduces and improving the environment.

Paper recycling is the process of turning waste paper into new paper products.

Such an issue is addressed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,679, EP0863255, EP2386681 and GB2026571. And explained in a more simplified manner could be found in a paper published on the TAPPI web site here: http://www.tappi.org/Bookstore/Public-Outreach/Earth-Answers/How-Is-Paper-Recycled.aspx.U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,679 discloses a process for reclaiming waste paper without deinking which involves pulping the waste paper in the presence of soft water and then adding to the pulp thus obtained a compound capable of liberating, in aqueous solution, ions with a positive charge equal to or greater than 2. The process can be used for the production of printing paper such as newsprint.

EP0863255 describes a moistureproof paper which is excellent in light-screening, moisture-proof, waterproof and heat-sealing properties and regeneration property at the time of reuse as a used paper, and a moisture-proof layer of maceration. Regeneration and heat-sealing properties is provided on the surface of a coated base having a light-screening layer of a hue to obtain a moisture-proof paper having a light-screening and regeneration properties.

EP2386681 discloses a bioprocess for recycling waste paper originated from high quality paper including the following steps: preparation of pulp, dilution with water of the pulped material obtained in preparation of pulp, enzymatic treatment of pulp. The bioprocess further including: addition of inorganic salts and glues, dilution with water of the material obtained, filtration by vacuum optional press and drying in particular when the high quality paper is printed paper.

GB2026571 discloses a paper for packing purposes, particularly for use in the manufacture of corrugated cardboard, is made from waste paper and afforded good strength and finish by a surface sizing with gelatinized starch from cereals and/or tubers and/or roots together with proteins contained in these materials after dispersion or solution. The sizing may consist of gelatinized starch and cereal proteins of a normal commercial wheat and, if required, a small addition of an oxidizing agent, e.g., ammonium persulphate. Fibrous material separated from the gelatinized starch may be added to the waste paper constituent.

The role of colors in readability has been extensively discussed in relationship to dyslexia, a reading disability which occurs in around 10-17.5% of the English and 7.5-11.8% of the Spanish speaking population (Rello and Baeza-Yates, 2012). Text customization suggestions broadly agree that people with dyslexia normally prefer lower brightness and color differences among text and background compared to the average reader (Bradford, 2011; Pedley 2006; British Dyslexia Association, 2012).

One object of the present invention is to provide a recycled paper for office use which is deliberately less white, even brownish and not as clean as paper made from virgin paper fibers.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a paper which is ecological and more environment friendly then existing papers.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a paper which is favorable in particular for people with writing and reading disabilities.

Another object of the present invention is to use mixed waste that contains newsprint; and brown packaging materials even so, this unwanted materials are not sorted out thus ending up with a paper products that have a brownish-gray shade and brown fibers are seen on the surface.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a brownish recycling paper which will be suitable for non-colored printing (black printing on the paper) and in addition will be cost saving solution for non-colored printing.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recycled paper which is lightly brown that is recycled from office papers, newspapers waste and cardboard papers waste and is suitable for colored printing

Deinking is the industrial process of removing printing ink from paper fibers of recycled paper to make deinked pulp. A combination of two deinking processes is often used. Small particles of ink are rinsed from the pulp with water in a process called washing. Larger particles and stickies are removed with air bubbles in another process called flotation. During flotation deinking, pulp is fed into a large vat called a flotation cell, where air and soaplike chemicals call surfactants are injected into the pulp. The surfactants cause ink and stickies to loosen from the pulp and stick to the air bubbles as they float to the top of the mixture. The inky air bubbles create foam or froth which is removed from the top, leaving the clean pulp behind.

The key in the deinking process is the ability to detach ink from the fibers. This is achieved by a combination of mechanical action and chemical means. In Europe the most common process is froth flotation deinking.

During refining, the pulp is beaten to make the recycled fibers swell, making them ideal for papermaking. If the pulp contains any large bundles of fibers, refining separates them into individual fibers. If the recovered paper is colored, color stripping chemicals remove the dyes from the paper. Then, if white recycled paper is being made, the pulp (which may include cellulose/fibers with colored components) may need to be bleached with hydrogen peroxide, chlorine dioxide, or oxygen to make it whiter and brighter.

If brown recycled paper is being made for example from cardboard waste, the pulp does not bleached. That is, because brown cellulose/fibers cannot be bleached during a deinking/bleaching process and in order to get a recycled paper with a lighter brown color there is a need to add white/office paper waste to the pulp.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an office paper without the use of the deinking step process in the recycling paper process.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recycled paper without using the deinking stage that will be suitable for Laser & inkjet printing, as well as FAX and meets for example the requirements of the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of copier machines.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a recycled paper which has a promotional value and helps to increase recycling rates. Due to its color, it can be an indication of the paper origin—waste paper, thereby encouraging positive consumer behavior.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method and system for recycling papers, in particular recycling papers for paper printing and writing proposes.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention there is provided a method for recycling paper to produce a less white paper product for paper printing and writing, said method comprising the steps of collecting papers waste. The collected papers waste is roughly sorted without the need to separate between the various paper grades. The sorted recycled paper is pressed. The sorted recycled paper is pulped by a pulper that contains water turns into a mixture. The pulper chops the sorted recycled paper into small pieces. Heating the pulp mixture breaks the recycled paper down more quickly into tiny strands of cellulose/fibers to eventually, the sorted recycled paper turns into a pulp.

Sieving, the pulp is forced through sieves containing holes and slots of various shapes and sizes, the sieves remove small contaminants.

Cleaning, the pulp spinning around in large cone-shaped cylinders; heavy contaminants are thrown to the outside of the cone and fall through the bottom of the cylinder; lighter contaminants collect in the center of the cone and are removed.

Refining, the pulp is beaten to make said recycled fibers swell for papermaking; if the pulp contains any large bundles of fibers, the refining step separates the bundles into individual fibers.

Dewatering, the watery pulp enters a headbox at the beginning of a paper machine, and then is sprayed in a continuous wide jet onto a huge flat wire sieve which is moving very quickly through the paper machine. On a sieve, water starts to drain from said pulp, and the recycled fibers quickly begin to bond together to form a watery sheet. The sheet moves rapidly through a series of felt-covered press rollers which squeeze out more water. The sheet, which now resembles paper, passes through a series of heated metal rollers which dry the paper.

paper making, the dried paper is wound into a giant roll and removed from the paper machine. The roll of the paper is cut into smaller rolls, or sometimes into sheets and made into the paper product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be understood upon reading of the following detailed description of non-limiting exemplary embodiments thereof, with reference to the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a flow chart describing the method of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a table that describes some of the differences between the recycled papers known in the prior art versus the recycled paper in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram of a system in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention;

The following detailed description of the invention refers to the accompanying drawings referred to above. Dimensions of components and features shown in the figures are chosen for convenience or clarity of presentation and are not necessarily shown to scale. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings and the following description to refer to the same and like parts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

While the tendency of office papers suppliers is to sell recycled office paper that looks like non recycled paper, regarding whiteness and cleanliness, the office paper produced in accordance with the method and system of the present invention is deliberately less white, even brownish and not as clean as paper made from virgin fibers. This type of paper is desirable because most of the real requirements of paper do not include high whiteness and cleanliness, especially if the achieved by ecological drawbacks. Moreover, researches showed that a paper that is being intended to be written on which is less white and even brownish and not as clean as paper made from virgin fibers is favorable in particular for people with writing and reading disabilities.

The way to manufacture fibers in accordance with the method and system of the present invention which will be used to produce printable and writeable papers products are more environment friendly then existing papers making. Most of the known papers that are produced under this title is made from high quality white waste paper, sorted and deinked.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a unique paper. This paper can be made from 100 percent recycled fibers and this paper can be made from 100 percent scrape paper, just collected around from households, industry, offices, shopping centers etc. It includes post consumer printed white papers, old newspaper, old carton and carton board and more. The production of this paper product in the process of recycling and production, the deinking and the bleaching steps, the color and paper quality sorting can be omitted from the process. This recycled paper provided in accordance with the present invention can be used for non-colored printing (black printing on the paper).

In some embodiments of the present invention the recycled paper can be recycled as light brown colored paper that can be recycled from office papers, newspapers waste and cardboard papers waste. Such light brown colored recycled paper can be suitable for colored printing as well. The brown color shades of the recycled paper can be determined by controlling the amount of white recycled paper waste and the amount of brown recycled paper waste in the pulp.

The process for making office papers in accordance with the present invention involves mixing used paper with water and may also include chemicals to break the mixture down. The mixture is then chopped up and heated, which breaks it down further into strands of cellulose, a type of organic plant material; this resulting mixture is called pulp, or slurry. The pulp is strained through sieves, which remove any glue or plastic that may still be in the mixture then cleaned and mixed with water. Then the pulp can be made into new recycled paper. In accordance with the present invention no de-inking or bleaching steps are needed and therefore omitted from the process.

A more detailed description of the process in accordance with the present invention is described below. In step 20 waste papers are collected for example from a container that contains waste papers that were for example at home, at school in a workplace or in a paper waste storing center. Waste paperboards are collected for example from retail chains, commercial centers and collection points in local authorities. Newspaper waste collection is collected for example by operating in local authorities via an array of waste containers positioned on streets and saturated building areas for the convenience of residents. Disposal of paper from offices is collected for example by a rapid, efficient disposal of paper from offices and institutions through waste containers adapted to an office environment. In this step not only white recycled papers disposed for example from offices can be collected in order to make a printable recycled paper as known in the prior art but also in accordance with the present invention newspaper waste collection and waste paperboards can be collected in order to make a printable recycled paper.

In step 22, at a recycling center, the collected paper roughly sorted and pressed and wrapped in tight bales in a cube formation and transported to a paper mill, where it will be recycled into new paper. In the recycling center the paper waste is then stored in special facilities designed for storing sheet or cardboard. A complete logistics system is responsible for transporting the paper waste to the recycling center. After the papers are collected, in step 20 a load transportation means such as truck is loaded with the paper waste and the track is unloaded in the recycling center. The workers at the recycling center unload the waste papers from the tracks and the paper waste is separated from large pollutants such as plastic, wood and metal which pollute the waste papers. Depending on the type of collection the sorting step can be done. The storing step is done even before the waste paper is reaching to the recycling center, generally with household waste collection centers like office buildings. To minimize the percentage of unwanted substances in the paper waste, as much as possible the paper waste is collated from the origin.

Typically, when recycled paper is made from paper waste, the recycled paper passes several processes that increase the manufacturing cost: the collection of the paper waste, the sorting of the paper waste to white/brown/white with good quality/white with lower quality. The logistic transportation to the recycling center and the sorting in the recycling center and thus the manufacturing of recycled paper from waste recycled paper is most of the time more expensive than manufacturing paper from a virgin fiber. Also during the collection step sorting can be done, sorted by quality and better waste (not printed paper, wet paper, crumpled paper, etc). In accordance with the present invention in this step there is no need to sort the waste paper to white/brown/white with good quality/white with lower quality thus, the cost of the recycled paper is reduced. In addition, there is no need to sort according to quality and better waste (not printed paper, wet paper, crumpled paper, etc) thus, the cost of the recycled paper is reduced.

After the recycled waste is roughly sorted, in step 24 a huge press presses the recycled paper to cubes formation that is weight about 700 kilograms. A track transport the paper cubes to the cardboard mill. Paper mill workers unload the recovered paper waste and put it into warehouses, where it is stored. In accordance with the present invention in order to make the recycled office paper/printable paper products there is no need to separate between the various paper grades, such as white printed office papers, newspapers and corrugated boxes. When the paper mill is ready to use the paper, the paper cubes are moved from the warehouse by conveyors.

In step 26 the paper moves by conveyor to a big vat called a pulper, which contains water. The pulper chops the recovered paper into small pieces. Heating the mixture breaks the paper down more quickly into tiny strands of cellulose (organic plant material) called fibers. Eventually, the old paper turns into a mushy mixture called pulp. In step 28 the pulp is forced through sieves containing holes and slots of various shapes and sizes. The sieves remove small contaminants such as bits of plastic and globs of glue. This process is called sieving. Mills also clean pulp by spinning it around in large cone-shaped cylinders. Heavy contaminants like staples are thrown to the outside of the cone and fall through the bottom of the cylinder. Lighter contaminants collect in the center of the cone and are removed. This process is called cleaning.

In step 30 in accordance with the present invention the recycled fiber is used alone, and there is no need to blend with new wood fiber (called virgin fiber) to give it extra strength or smoothness. During refining, the pulp is beaten to make the recycled fibers swell, making them ideal for papermaking. If the pulp contains any large bundles of fibers, refining separates them into individual fibers. The pulp is mixed with water and no chemicals are needed for the deinking process. However, functional chemicals are used which are essential for the paper production such as polymers that couples the fibers on the sieve and preventing the flash of the fibers through the sieve. In addition, sizing substance is applied during the paper manufacture to reduce the paper's tendency when dry to absorb liquid, with the goal of allowing inks and paints to remain on the surface of the paper and to dry there, rather than be absorbed into the paper. Starch or amylum substance is applied for strengthen the recycled paper. In some embodiments of the present invention dye or pigment substances can be added to the pulp for shading the paper product such that the paper product may have other shades than brownish or white shades. For example a purple dye or pigment color substance can be added and mixed with the pulp in order to give the paper product more neutral shade.

This watery pulp enters a headbox, which is a giant metal box at the beginning of the paper machine, and then is sprayed in a continuous wide jet onto a huge flat wire sieve which is moving very quickly through the paper machine. On the sieve, water starts to drain from the pulp, and the recycled fibers quickly begin to bond together to form a watery sheet.

The recycled paper that is made in accordance with the present invention does not go the deinking processing step thus, coloration, fillers, clays, and fiber fragments of the paper doesn't have to be removed. Because a brownish recycled paper is being made, the pulp also doesn't have to be bleached, thus hydrogen peroxide, chlorine dioxide, or oxygen are not needed to make the paper whiter and brighter. The sheet moves rapidly through a series of felt-covered press rollers which squeeze out more water. The sheet, which now resembles paper, passes through a series of heated metal rollers which dry the paper.

Finally, in step 32 if coated paper is being made, a coating mixture can be applied near the end of the process, or in a separate process after the papermaking is completed. Coating gives paper a smooth, glossy surface for printing. The finished paper is wound into a giant roll and removed from the paper machine. The roll of paper is cut into smaller rolls, or sometimes into sheets, before being shipped to a converting plant where it will be printed or made into paper products such as but not limited to printable papers envelopes etc. The paper products when returned to be paper waste can be recycled again in accordance with the method and systems of the present invention to manufacture the paper products.

Referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a table describing some of the differences between recycled papers known in the prior art and the recycled paper in accordance with the present invention. The first right column in the table describes the following for each recycling paper: the main usage, the shade, percent of recycled, percent of post consumer, origin of fibers, mechanical cleaning and chemical deinking. From the table there is shown that the paper in accordance with the present invention is used as paper office, the same goes for regular white recycled paper. Papers that are 100 percent recycled white papers are also for paper office use. Regular 100 percent recycled brown papers are used for packaging and not for office papers. The shade of the papers in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention is brownish and may have lighter or deeper brownish color shade and is used for office paper proposes such as but not limited to printable papers envelopes etc. The shade of regular white recycled paper is white and the same shade is for the 100 percent recycled white paper. For papers known in the art which are 100 percent recycled brown have a brown shade. The paper in accordance with the present invention is 100 percent recycled, the regular white paper is approximately between 50-70 percent recycled paper and there is also known in the 100 percent white recycled paper. The brown paper which is used for packaging is 100 percent recycled. The origin of the fibers for the recycled paper in accordance of the present invention is from waste collection and no color and quality paper waste sorting processing step is needed. For regular white recycled paper most of the waste collection is from designated sites and in addition the waste is sorted, the same is for the 100 percent white recycled paper. For the 100 percent brown recycled paper the origin of fiber is from waste collection and a brown sorting step procedure is needed. All of the described prior art recycled papers and the recycled paper in accordance with the present invention goes the mechanical cleaning procedure. In accordance with the present invention a chemicals deinking processing step is not require in order to produce the recycled paper of the invention while all of the mentioned prior art recycled papers goes the chemicals deinking processing step accept for the 100 percent recycled brown which is main usage is for packaging.

Referring to FIG. 3 combining a brown recycle line 50 that typically produces brown recycled corrugated board with the fine paper machine 52 that typically produced white recycling office paper enable to produce the unique 100 percent recycle paper of the invention. The brown recycled line enables to treat mechanically difficult to recycle waste paper, like old corrugated boxes. The fine paper machine enables to produce a controlled sheet 54 suitable for the different office paper printing requirements.

It should be understood that the above description is merely exemplary and that there are various embodiments of the present invention that may be devised, mutatis mutandis, and that the features described in the above-described embodiments, and those not described herein, may be used separately or in any suitable combination; and the invention can be devised in accordance with embodiments not necessarily described above. 

1. A method for recycling paper to produce a less white and clean office paper product for paper printing and writing, said method comprising the steps of: collecting waste papers; sorting said collected papers waste without the need to separate between the various paper grades; pressing said sorted recycled paper; pulping said sorted recycled paper by a pulper which contains water turns into a mixture; said pulper chops said sorted recycled paper into small pieces; heating said pulp mixture breaks said recycled paper down more quickly into tiny strands of cellulose or fibers to eventually, said sorted recycled paper turns into a pulp; sieving, said pulp is forced through sieves containing holes and slots of various shapes and sizes, said sieves remove small contaminants; cleaning, said pulp spinning around in large cone-shaped cylinders; heavy contaminants are thrown to the outside of the cone and fall through the bottom of the cylinder; lighter contaminants collect in the center of the cone and are removed; refining, said pulp is beaten to make said recycled fibers swell for papermaking; if said pulp contains any large bundles of fibers, said refining step separates said bundles into individual fibers; dewatering, said watery pulp enters a headbox at a paper machine, and then is sprayed in a continuous wide jet onto a huge flat wire sieve which is moving very quickly through said paper machine; on a sieve, water starts to drain from said pulp, and said recycled fibers quickly begin to bond together to form a watery sheet; said sheet moves rapidly through a series of felt-covered press rollers which squeeze out more water; said sheet, which now resembles paper, passes through a series of heated metal rollers which dry said paper’, said dried paper is wound into a giant roll and removed from the paper machine; the roll of said paper is cut into smaller rolls, or sometimes into sheets and made into said paper product.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein said collected paper waste is selected at least from disposal of paper from offices, paperboards waste, newspaper waste, said wastes are recycled for said paper product.
 3. A method according to claim 1, wherein in said sorting step said paper waste is separated from large pollutants which pollute the waste papers.
 4. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product having brownish color origin from paperboards waste.
 5. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product is 100 percent made from recycled fibers.
 6. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product is less clean and white than a paper made from recycled white paper.
 7. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product is less clean and white than a recycled paper that was bleached.
 8. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product is less clean and white than a recycled paper that was deinked.
 9. A method according to claim 1, wherein most of coloration, fillers, clays, and fiber fragments origin from said recycled waste is maintained in said paper product.
 10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the shade of said recycled paper product can be determined by controlling the amount of white recycled paper waste and the amount of brown recycled paper waste in said pulp.
 11. A method according to claim 1, wherein said paper product is recyclable to produce a paper product for printing and writing.
 12. A method according to claim 1, wherein a coating mixture can be applied near the end of the process, or in a separate process after the papermaking is completed.
 13. A method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of paper shading by adding dye or pigment substances to said pulp for color shading said recycled paper product such that said paper product may have other shades than brownish or white, or such that said paper product may have neutral shade.
 14. A system for recycling paper to produce a less white paper product for paper printing and writing, said system comprising the combining of a brown recycle line that is used to produces brown recycled corrugated board with a fine paper machine that is used to produced white recycling office paper, this combining enables to produce said less white paper product for paper printing and writing.
 15. A system according to claim 14, wherein a collected paper waste is selected at least from disposal of paper from offices, paperboards waste, newspaper waste, said wastes are recycled for said paper product.
 16. A system according to claim 14, wherein said paper product having brownish color origin from paperboards waste. 